Automotive bumper with integral hitch cover

ABSTRACT

A bumper assembly for a motor vehicle includes a bumper structure having a bumper beam adapted for attachment to a structure of a motor vehicle such as a frame or rails, or the like. A hitch is attached to the bumper beam, and a bumper cover conceals the bumper beam. The bumper cover has an opening for accessing the hitch and an access door for selectively concealing the hitch. The access door is mounted to the bumper structure such that the access door will be retained upon the bumper structure not only when the access door is concealing the hitch but also when the access door is open to allow an accessory such as a trailer to be coupled to the hitch.

[0001] The present application is a divisional of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 10/605,341 filed on Sep. 23, 2003 which is acontinuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/352,304filed on Jan. 27, 2003 which is a divisional application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 09/910,772, filed Jul. 23, 2001, now U.S. Pat. No.6,581,955, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 09/698,711, filed Oct. 27, 2000, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,502,848,which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/296,185,filed Apr. 26, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,179,320.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] The present invention relates to an automotive bumper having anintegral hitch receiver contained within a space defined by the bumper,and an integral cover for selectively enclosing said space and saidhitch receiver. As used herein, the term “hitch receiver” means either adrawbar to which a hitch ball or other hitching device may be mounted,or a tubular socket, typically having a square opening, for accepting adrawbar hitch.

[0004] 2. Disclosure Information

[0005] At one time, trailer hitches, particularly receiver type hitches,were the exclusive province of more rugged utility vehicles such aspickup trucks. As employed with a pickup truck, a typical receiver hitchprovides a level of aesthetics generally in keeping with more ruggedvehicles. However, as trailer towing has become more popular, andindeed, as the weight of towed trailers laden with such items as boats,personal watercraft, all-terrain vehicles, camping equipment, and othertypes of trailer loads has steadily increased, receiver type hitcheshave migrated into widespread usage with sport utility vehicles,minivans, station wagons, and the like. Unfortunately, receiver hitchesare not precisely compatible, in most cases, with the aesthetics of moresophisticated sport utility vehicles. As a result, it has been proposedto provide a cover to hide a hitch receiver when the towing vehicle isnot in fact hitched to a trailer. U.S. Pat. No. 6,581,955, which isassigned to the assignee of the present invention, discloses and claimsan automotive bumper having an integral hitch receiver and a removablecover. While such a cover does provide a reasonable level of aestheticappeal when installed upon the bumper assembly, the cover is prone todamage either from being crushed into the ground when the vehicle moves,if it is carelessly left under one of the roadwheels. And, the cover issubject to loss or theft. These shortcomings are occasioned by the factthat the cover is not positively retained upon the vehicle when thecover is not in its installed position.

[0006] The present integral tow hitch bumper solves the problemsassociated with prior art tow hitch bumpers by providing superioraesthetics, and enhanced protection of towing equipment fromenvironmental damage, in the form of a tow bumper having an integralcover which is kinematically retained upon the bumper assembly's bumpercover.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

[0007] A bumper assembly for a motor vehicle includes a bumper beamadapted for attachment to a frame or other vehicle structure, such asrails, a hitch receiver integral with the bumper beam, and a bumpercover for concealing the bumper beam. The bumper cover has an openingfor accessing the hitch receiver. An access door is provided forselectively closing the hitch access opening, so as to conceal the hitchreceiver. The access door is mounted to the bumper cover such that theaccess door is movable from a first, or closed, position in which theaccess door closes the opening such that the hitch receiver is concealedto a second, or open, position which the hitch receiver is accessiblefor a towing operation and the access door is in a ‘stored’, or open,position. The access door remains attached to the bumper cover in bothof these positions i.e. the open and closed positions.

[0008] An access door according to the present invention may be hingedlymounted to the bumper cover or alternatively slidably mounted to thebumper cover. If slidably mounted, the access door may be movable eitherin a lateral or generally vertical direction. If hinged to the bumpercover, the access door in the would, in a preferred embodiment, bemounted to the bumper cover for rotation about a generally horizontalaxis.

[0009] According to another aspect of the present invention, the presentbumper assembly may be attached to either a front frame portion or arear frame portion of an automotive vehicle. As used herein, the term‘frame’ means either a conventional frame used in combination with aseparate automotive body, or frame rails or other structuresincorporated in a unitized body/frame combination, or a hybrid of thetwo types of construction.

[0010] According to another aspect of the present invention, a methodfor providing a concealable tow hitch for an automotive vehicle includesthe steps of providing a bumper beam which is rigidly attached to aframe of the automotive vehicle, and providing a hitch receiver attachedto the bumper beam. The present method further includes the steps ofproviding a bumper cover for concealing the bumper beam, with the bumpercover having an aperture for accessing the hitch receiver, and finally,providing an access door which is kinematically retained upon the bumpercover and movable between a closed position in which the access doorencloses the aperture such that the hitch receiver and other hitchaccessories such as a wiring harness are concealed, and an open positionin which the hitch receiver is accessible for towing and other uses, andthe access door is stored. As used herein, the term “kinematicallyretained” means that although the access door is free to move withrespect to the bumper cover, generally either slidingly or in arotational fashion, the door remains attached to the bumper cover.

[0011] It is an advantage of the present invention that a bumper havinga tow hitch may be functionally and aesthetically enhanced through theuse of the present access door, which selectively conceals the hitch andwhich is stored within the bumper itself, so as to avoid loss or damageof the cover.

[0012] It is a further advantage of the present invention that thepresence of a hitch which may be used for attaching either a trailer, ora bicycle rack, or a winch, or other device at the front of a vehiclemay be concealed through the use of the present inventive cover system,so as to allow the aesthetic quality of the front of the vehicle to begreatly improved notwithstanding the provision of hitching capability.

[0013] Other advantages, as well as objects and features of the presentinvention, will become apparent to the reader of this specification.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0014]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the rear portion of a vehiclehaving a bumper assembly according to the present invention.

[0015]FIG. 1a is similar to FIG. 1 but shows a bumper assembly accordingto the present invention at the front of a vehicle.

[0016]FIG. 2 is a perspective view, partially cut-away, of a bumpersystem according to the present invention.

[0017]FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a bumper assembly according to thepresent invention having a first embodiment of an access door accordingto the present invention.

[0018]FIG. 4 similar to FIG. 3, but shows the access door of FIG. 3 inan open position.

[0019]FIG. 5 illustrates a slidable access door according to the presentinvention, in a partially open position.

[0020]FIG. 6 is a sectional view, partially broken away, of the bumperassembly of FIG. 5, taken along the line of 6-6 of FIG. 5.

[0021]FIG. 7 is an elevational view of a bumper assembly having agenerally vertically slidable access door according to the presentinvention.

[0022]FIG. 8 is a plan view, partially broken away, of the bumper systemshown in FIG. 7.

[0023]FIG. 9 is a plan view, partially broken away, of an alternativeembodiment of a bumper system showing an access cover mounted to a hitchreceiver.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0024] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 1a, vehicle 10 has bumper assemblies 16,with each including bumper cover 18 and access door 28 which closesbumper cover opening 24. As noted above, a bumper assembly, or system,according to the present invention may be mounted at either end of amotor vehicle. This allows not only hitches, but also accessories suchas luggage carriers and bicycle carriers, to be mounted at either end ofa vehicle.

[0025]FIG. 2 shows bumper beam 20, which may be drawn from a pluralityof different types of beams including channel sections, box sections andother types of structural members built from metallic or non-metallic orcomposite materials known to those skilled in the art and suggested bythis disclosure. Regardless of the type of construction of bumper beam20, it is anticipated that bumper beam 20 will be covered with bumpercover 18. Thus bumper beam 20 will be hidden when access door 28 isapplied according to the present invention.

[0026] As shown in FIG. 2, Bumper beam 20 is attached to body 14 ofvehicle 10 by means of frame siderails 22 and bumper brackets 21. Bumperbrackets 21 are either riveted, or bonded, or welded, or bolted, orotherwise joined to bumper beam 20 and are either riveted, or welded, orbolted, or bonded, otherwise joined to frame siderails 22. In theparticular embodiment shown in FIG. 2, bumper brackets 21 are bolted tosiderails 22 and to bumper beam 20. FIG. 2 also shows hitch 26 which isattached to a lower portion of bumper beam 20 by means of eitherbonding, welding, or through the use of threaded or unthreadedfasteners, or through a combination of welding, bonding or fasteners.Hitch receiver 26 has a passage therethrough to permit engagement witheither a hitch drawbar bearing a hitch ball, or any other type ofaccessory marketed for use with a receiver hitch. Moreover, thoseskilled in the art will appreciate in view of this disclosure that abumper system according to the present invention could incorporate aconventional fixed drawbar, non-receiver type of hitch, which is a lowercost alternative to a receiver hitch. The hitch itself may be eitherintegral with the bumper beam, or otherwise attached by either bonding,or welding, or threaded fasteners, or by other systems known to thoseskilled in the art and suggested by this disclosure.

[0027]FIGS. 3 and 4 show details of a first embodiment of an access door28 according to the present invention. Access door 28 is said to bekinematically retained upon bumper cover 18 because although access door28 is free to swing upon hinges 36, which are pivoted upon hinge pin 40,so that access door 28 may be rotated upwardly to permit insertion of adrawbar, access door 28 will remain attached to bumper cover 18. Accessdoor 28 of FIG. 3 is also equipped with a torsion spring 30 which drivesaccess door 28 into its upright or open position when twist-lockfasteners 32 are mechanically released, either manually or electrically,from a locked to an unlocked position. Fasteners 32 have latch pins 33extending inwardly from the outer surface of the access door and intoapertures 37 formed in tabs 35. When access door 28 is rotated upwardlyand into the position shown in FIG. 4, door 28 will not interfere with atow bar inserted into hitch receiver 26. As an alternative construction,hinge pin 40 may comprise a torsion bar, thereby eliminating the needfor a separate torsion spring.

[0028]FIG. 5 illustrates a sliding access door 28 in a partially openposition. The sliding mechanism is shown in FIG. 6, wherein access door28 is shown as being captured in channels 34 which are formed integrallywith upper and lower portions of access opening 24 which is formed inbumper cover 18. As shown in FIG. 5, access door 28 may be freely movedin a track formed by channels 34 to the right in FIG. 5 so as to provideaccessibility to hitch receiver 26, while allowing hitch receiver 26 andindeed, bumper cover opening 24 itself to be concealed when hitchreceiver 26 is not in use.

[0029] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that a bumper assemblyaccording to the present invention with its integral hitch receiver 26may be used not only for pulling of trailers, but also for attaching anumber of devices such as bicycle racks, luggage carriers, coolers andother devices intending to be mounted upon a square receiver hitch.

[0030]FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate a second type of sliding access doorembodiment in which access door 28 is confined within generallyvertically extending channels 38 formed in bumper cover 18 such thataccess door 28 may be slidably movable in a generally vertical directionso as to allow access to hitch receiver 26.

[0031] Although in a preferred embodiment, bumper cover 18 and accessdoor 28 comprise molded plastic, those skilled in the art in view ofthis disclosure that other types of metallic and non-metallic materialsand composites thereof may be used for the purpose of providing a bumpercover and access door according to the present invention. If desired,bumper cover 18 and access door 28 may comprise an integral, one-pieceassembly, with door 28 being kinematically retained upon cover 18 bymeans of a plastic living hinge.

[0032]FIG. 9 illustrates another embodiment of the present invention inwhich access door 28 has an attaching bracket or stem 46 mounted to theinner surface of door 28, with bracket 46 being adapted for telescopicengagement with square-ported hitch receiver 26, and with access door 28being sized so as to engage the outer surface of bumper cover 18extending about the periphery of aperture 24, so as go generally closethe entirety of aperture 24, thereby concealing hitch receiver 26.Tether 48, which preferably comprises a flexible metallic ornon-metallic or composite cable, has a first end attached to door 28 anda second end secured to either bumper cover 18, or to another structuralcomponent dictated by design choice. Access door 28 according to FIG. 9includes bullet latches 44, which are driven by compression springs 50.Latches 44 allow access door 28 to accommodate a limited range of sizesof receiver 26.

[0033] According to another aspect of the present invention, a methodfor providing a concealable tow hitch for an automotive vehicle includesproviding a bumper beam as shown, with a hitch receiver mounted to thebumper beam, and then furnishing a bumper cover having an access doorwhich is kinematically retained upon the bumper cover. The access dooris movable from a closed position and through a partially open positionand into a fully open position. The access door is kinematicallyretained upon the bumper cover in order that the access door will notbecome lost or damaged as an unintended result of separation of theaccess door from the bumper cover.

[0034] Although the present invention has been described in connectionwith particular embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that variousmodifications, alterations, and adaptations may be made by those skilledin the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the inventionset forth in the following claims.

1. A method for providing an access door for concealing a hitch receiverin a bumper assembly of an automotive vehicle, wherein said bumperassembly has a bumper cover with an aperture for accessing the hitchreceiver, with said method comprising the steps of: providing an accessdoor having an outer surface and an inner surface, with said access doorfurther having an attaching bracket mounted to said inner surface, withsaid bracket being adapted for engagement with said hitch receiver, andwith said access door being sized so as to engage with said bumper coverand extending about the periphery of said aperture, so as go generallyclose said aperture, thereby concealing said hitch receiver; andinstalling said access door upon said vehicle by engaging said attachingbracket with said hitch receiver, thereby placing the access door incontact with the bumper cover at the periphery of said aperture.
 2. Amethod according to claim 1, wherein said outer surface of said accessdoor is decorated.
 3. A method according to claim 1, wherein said accessdoor is tethered to said bumper assembly.
 4. An access door adapted toconceal a tubular hitch receiver mounted within a bumper assembly of anautomotive vehicle, wherein said bumper assembly has a bumper cover withan aperture for accessing the hitch receiver, with said access doorhaving an outer surface and an inner surface, with said access doorfurther having an attaching bracket mounted to said inner surface, withsaid attaching bracket being adapted for telescopic engagement with saidhitch receiver, and with said access door being sized so as to engagesaid bumper cover and extending about the periphery of said aperture, soas go generally close the entirety of said aperture, thereby concealingsaid hitch receiver.
 5. An access door according to claim 4, whereinsaid access door further comprises a tether having a first end attachedto said access door and a second end adapted for attachment to avehicle.
 6. An access door according to claim 4, wherein said accessdoor further comprises at least one spring-loaded latch for engagingsaid attaching bracket with a hitch receiver.